River · Liberia
Cavalla
The Cavalla is the longest river of Liberia. It rises in the highlands of the interior and flows about 515 kilometres to the Gulf of Guinea, reaching the sea east of the town of Harper.
Picture credit: Gregor Rom (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Kafougue (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is the Cavalla?
The river starts here: forested highlands in the north of Liberia.
It ends in the Gulf of Guinea east of Harper.
Countries on the river: Liberia.
The story behind it
For most of its way the Cavalla is a border: on one bank lies Liberia, on the other the neighbouring country. Because the two states describe that line differently and the water shifts its channel, sources do not agree on the exact length of the river. It travels through thick rainforest where chimpanzees call in the canopy and the shy pygmy hippopotamus hides in swampy side arms. Rapids break the journey, so goods move by canoe only in sections, and fishing villages stand on the quiet stretches between them. In the rainy season the water rises fast and reddish brown, tearing branches from the banks; in the dry season rocks appear in the middle of the bed. Near Harper the river finally spreads out and meets the ocean surf.
Questions children ask
How long is the Cavalla?
The Cavalla is usually given as about 515 kilometres. Because it runs along a border and changes its bed, the exact figure is uncertain.
Which countries does the Cavalla flow along?
Here the Cavalla counts as the river of Liberia. Over a long stretch its water also touches the neighbouring state, because the river itself marks the border.
Where does the Cavalla flow into the sea?
The river ends in the Gulf of Guinea, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. Its mouth lies a short way east of the port town of Harper.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
Last checked: